Author Archives: Rusty Rueff

About Rusty Rueff

Rusty Rueff, author of purposed worKING. Rusty Rueff is the former Chairman Emeritus of The GRAMMY Foundation in Los Angeles. He most recently completed the successful 16 month leadership role as Coordinating National Co-Chair for Technology for Obama (T4O) for the reelection of President Obama and ten-years of Board service and President of the Board of Trustees of the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Corporately, most recently Rueff was the Chief Executive Officer at SNOCAP, Inc. until the acquisition of the company by imeem, Inc. in April 2008. Before joining SNOCAP in 2005, he was Executive Vice President of Human Resources at Electronic Arts (EA) from 1998 until 2005. He was also with the PepsiCo companies for more than ten years, with the Pratt & Whitney division of United Technologies for two years, and in commercial radio as an on-air personality for six years. Rusty holds an M.S. in counseling and a B.A. in radio and television from Purdue University. In 2003 he was named a distinguished Purdue alumnus, and he and his wife, Patti, are the named benefactors of Purdue’s Patti and Rusty Rueff School of Visual and Performing Arts. He is a corporate director of Glassdoor.com and runcoach. He is the co-founder and Executive Committee Member of T4A.org, serves on the Founding Circle of The Centrist Project and a founding Board Member of The GRAMMY Music Education Coalition. He is also the co-author of the book Talent Force: A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business. Rusty and his wife, Patti, reside in Hillsborough, CA and Charlestown, R.I.

day 881: Capital: Part Three – Value

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“So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth”
 The issue with lots of investors (and Board of Directors for that matter) is that for what they were selected doesn’t necessarily translate to what the company or organization needs.  Investors what bring capital to the table many times don’t have either relevant industry experience or subject matter knowledge to really help the company along in the early days.  What they bring forward it money and something that they have accomplished along the way that got them into the investor seat.  This could have been that they were part of a company homerun exit for the firm and because of this they brought them inside to the investment firm.  Lots of times though that same very successful person will not have the depth of operating experience that the CEO/Founder craves.  They will certainly have tons of financial savvy and knowledge, connections with other investors and that network can be important for sure.  There are many investors who feel like their greatest contribution is helping the company land the next round of funding at an up valuation. And again, there is great value in that, but it’s not everything.  Founders/CEOs/Senior Team members should really not look to their financial investors to be the be all and end all. Instead they should be sure to look to round out their Board, fill in the gaps and ensure that around the table is a great blend of people who all share the same values, principles and desires for the future of the company.
Paul tells us where it is that we must stay focused and look towards for what we need to grow. How easy it is for us to get “distracted and swayed” by the advice of the world around us.  Look no further than the number of self-help and self-improvement books that are published each year.  Need a new diet, a new attitude, a new outlook, a new look, a new anything, and there is a book for it.  Add in the motivational and inspirational speakers, CDs, podcasts, websites, etc. and there is no shortage for ways to better and grow.  But, Paul tells us not to expect that true growth and value-add to come from these things.  He directs us back to the one always trusted, always relevant and always value-adding voice and that is the voice of God in our lives.  As we look around us to for the value that others can bring to us, let’s not put our faith there.  Let’s be sure and recognize that the truth only lies with Him!
Reference: 1 Corinthians 3:7